How does CPM M4 fare as heavy-duty machete?

[Storm Crow]

...it is a beautiful dance of compromises. If you are not breaking stuff, you are not pushing the edge of competition.

Regarding sweet spot weighting...it's a great idea, but you can get by with less by using two weight points farther apart and let inertia work for you just my humble opinion.

That's very eloquent.

I'd like to hear more on the two weight points thing. I'm not being able to envision it.

 

[unit]

That's very eloquent.

I'd like to hear more on the two weight points thing. I'm not being able to envision it.

The effective center of mass can be achieved with any number of weights arranged accordingly. That is, one 4 ounce weight at point x or two 2 ounce weights located at x+y and x-y.

Dynamics complicate the problem a bit, but once you understand how, you can achieve more with less...and lighter is often faster and almost always easier to control

 

[Storm Crow]

So how would that translate into blade geometry? Where would your two points tend to be?

 

[David Stifle]

What is this "grind" of which you speak? I forge 'em in. Forging tapers kind of comes naturally to the process, especially if you are forging as closely as you can to your final product. Grinding takes more effort to get the same results. Of course, grinding has plenty of advantages over forging and vice versa. It's all balance.

Typically on my bush swords, the widest part of the blade is also the thickest. When I forge my preform, that area stays closest to the original bar stock, then I forge my bevel, which is a full flat bevel. At that thickest, widest part, or just back of it, is the chopping sweet spot. You can keep the overall weight pretty low like that while still making a powerful chopper. Don't know how it would match up in a competition blade, but I know how it does on mesquite and oak.

I know the main topic is alloy choice, but making blades is kind of a total package thing. Good alloy with bad geometry or bad heat treatment will not equal a good blade, and so forth.

I agree, forging skills are important, as are the steel choices one makes, total package, yes. . But, in the final analysis, performance resides mainly in the heat treatment. In my humble opinion anyway.